Presidential candidates fail to impress Pocono independent voters

Wednesday

Oct 24, 2012 at 12:01 AM

One of the supposed functions of the presidential debates is to sway voters who consider themselves independent. But for our Pocono Record 2012 Election Panel, this batch of debates didn't seem to make a dent. Four of the six panelists registered as independent said their minds were mostly made up before the series of three presidential debates, and nothing said over the last four weeks managed to change their minds.

MICHAEL SADOWSKI

One of the supposed functions of the presidential debates is to sway voters who consider themselves independent.

But for our Pocono Record 2012 Election Panel, this batch of debates didn't seem to make a dent.

Four of the six panelists registered as independent said their minds were mostly made up before the series of three presidential debates, and nothing said over the last four weeks managed to change their minds.

"And if I was one of the people looking to make a decision from the debates, I don't know how anyone could have done it," said Ron Van Meerbeke, 74, of Reeders. "These guys just rambled on and on, they kept contradicting themselves, they weren't ever specific. It was just the same old stuff."

Jonathan Maula, 24, of Henryville, said after the three debates, it's pretty clear where each person stands — and it's not any different from where they were at the start of the month.

"I don't know how anyone could be really undecided at this point. If the economy is your biggest issue, then you're probably with Romney," Maula said. "If you're looking at social issues, then you're with Obama. They both seem to be on the same page when it comes to foreign policy, so it really comes down to the economy and social issues."

Shannon Smith, 41, of East Stroudsburg, said after the Democratic National Convention she had mostly made her mind up to stick with Obama for another four years, but still went into the debates with an open mind.

"But everything seemed to be repeat information," she said. "We already knew everything before the debates. I don't think anyone learned anything. It was just the same thing, over and over."

Ernest Mahar, 59, of East Stroudsburg, said he leans conservatively, and has been planning on voting for Romney since the summer.

That's not as much a vote for Romney as it is a vote against Obama, who he classified as an "abject failure" in office. "I just don't think he's up for the job," he said.

Two independent panelists could not be reached Tuesday.

Now with the debates over and two weeks left to sway votes, our local independent voters believe it's going to take something monumental to change their minds.

"It would have to be something huge, something scandalous," Smith said, saying she stays registered as an independent to avoid the "propaganda" of the two-party system.

Maula said he stays independent for the same reason, out of frustration over the two-party system, and hearing the two sides talk during the debates reinforces that.

"It just seems like a lot of wasted air time," he said. "The whole point is to sway votes, and we just heard the same things. Now it's just a trust issue more."

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